Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Quick Thoughts

I just finished watching Game 7 of the 1984 NBA Finals (Celtics-Lakers) on RaptorsTV, and one thing is clear to me; if they ever make a movie about the NBA's rise to stardom in the 1980's the part of CBS play-by-play man Brent Musburger will be played by Daily Show correspondent Steve Carrell. Witness:

Young Musburger

Steve Carrell

In other news... Some surprises in Week 1 of the NFL, especially the Vikings collapse. I picked them to win the NFC, and they did nothing on Sunday to justify my confidence in them. Additionally, I invested two high draft picks in Daunte Culpepper and Nate Burleson in my ESPN Fantasy League, and they combined for about 2 points. Suffice to say I'm not the biggest Vikings fan right now. At some point, I'll post the NFL picks that I made prior to the season, Grabia and Kimmis can attest to their authenticity as they were emailed out last week. And if that's not proof enough, would I be lying about picking the Vikes after the performance they put in this week? Lynn Swann is considering a run for Governor of Pennsylvania. That would be quite the step up from sideline reporter for ABC College Football.Grabia talked about the retirement of Ron Francis. In addition to Ronnie Franchise, we've lost Mess, Al MacInnis and Scott Stevens amongst others. All of the aforementioned names are surefire first ballot hall of famers, it's sad they didn't get a proper goodbye on the ice; Francis' career ended on a Jeremy Roenick wristshot that eliminated the Leafs from the playoffs, Mess ran out the clock playing meaningless regular season games with the Rangers, and MacInnis and Stevens were forced out due to injuries. One more note about Francis, he was a deadline pickup by the Toronto Maple Leafs at the end of the 2004 season, and played with them through the playoffs. I derive some measure of satisfaction from knowing that it drives Grabia crazy that his second favorite player of all time suited up for the Leafs, even for a brief period of time. I can't wait until he gets elected to the Hall, so I can start lobbying for a Francis Toronto Maple Leafs jersey to be put on display at his induction ceremony. Big happenings in college football so far. I'm less enthused than most ND fans about their start; Pitt looks like a dud and they spent the entire half clinging to the lead against Michigan. MSU always gives the Irish trouble, and could be a trap game. Let's hope Charlie can keep them focused and undefeated after the weekend. Next week they play at Washington (coached by Tyrone Willingham, the man Weis replaced) then have a huge matchup against Purdue to start October. Should be fun. The Texas-OSU game Saturday night was a great game. It may never surface on ESPN Classic, but it was a great matchup of two of the best in the nation giving it their all. The Vince Young-AJ Hawk battle was a classic. In the end, Texas won because Vince Young made plays, while OSU couldn't get their playmaker (Ted Ginn Jr.) involved. If they can shake the psychological monkey and beat Oklahoma in 3 weeks, Texas will win every game as long as Vince Young keeps playing the way he is. He's that good. The big game this weekend is the SEC tilt between Tennessee and Florida. This is always a good battle, but should be especially interesting to watch to see how Urban Meyer's offense matches up against Tennessee's strong defense. I'll be commenting on the game if I have a chance to watch it Saturday night, which is up in the air right now. I haven't had a chance to play the new NHL video games yet. I normally buy all the EA games, but decided to skip out on NHL this year, since I played about 5 games in the 2005 version, and lost interest. My friend Bazin, having sold out EA for the darkside, raved to me about 2K6, so I may check it out. The biggest stumbling block for me? Bob Cole and Harry Neale on commentary. Ugh. On the other hand, I discovered that Bazin is a fan of Cole and Neale, which makes him the first person I've met who actually likes them. And before you ask, yes, he is a Leafs fan. Finally, is there anything Shaq can't do? (Aside from shooting free throws).

I may make quick posts over the weekend, otherwise I'll be back early next week with more.